Reconstruction of the Furnace

Chapter 57 Re-training

The next morning, a loud bugle call rang out outside.

Immediately afterwards, there was a knock on the door.

Wu Zu opened his eyes groggily and saw Wu Guodong walking into the room with a bag on his back.

"Huh? Dad, where are you going?"

"Since the higher-ups aren't allocating funds, the dean and I are planning to go to the provincial level to try and get some donations."

"Seeking sponsorship?"

Upon hearing this word, Wu Zu was taken aback.

This is a highly confidential research institute. Do you think they're planning to find a company to sponsor the missile?

Seeing Wu Zu's puzzled expression, Liu Xuelan smiled and explained, "What your dad meant by 'getting sponsorship' is actually asking the provincial research institute or those former military-to-civilian enterprises for research funding."

""

"Oh, I see!" Wu Zu exclaimed in sudden realization. "So, are you all going?"

"Your dad and the dean can go. I and a few other researchers will stay here and keep watch."

Upon hearing that Liu Xuelan wasn't going, Wu Zu was immediately disappointed.

If only they all left, I could sell all the things in the factory that I don't need and maybe make a lot of money.

But if they don't leave, it will be very difficult for me to sell the equipment.

"Oh, that's a real shame."

"Hmm? What's a pity?"

Liu Xuelan was puzzled when she heard Wu Zu say it was a pity.

Wu Zu quickly waved his hand, "It's nothing, it's nothing. I just felt that I was planning to talk to everyone about radar technology, but they won't be able to hear it now that they've left."

Upon hearing this, Liu Xuelan and Wu Guodong couldn't help but laugh.

"It's okay. If a few people understand, they can explain it to us later. Besides, we'll film the explanation process."

"Yes, the most urgent thing now is to raise some money quickly, otherwise the research institute really won't survive."

Just then, the sound of a car horn came from afar, and Wu Guodong reached out and touched Wu Zu's head.

"Son, Dad's leaving now, I'll bring you something delicious when I come back!"

Everyone got into the car and left. People from the factory came out to see them off, which showed how important this sponsorship was.

If they can actually secure sponsorship, the research institute will still have a glimmer of hope.

But Wu Zu knew in his heart that their chances were slim.

As a time traveler, he knew the situation of this period all too well. The military-to-civilian factories that had been separated from the military were not doing very well, and it was mostly impossible to borrow money from them.

However, Wu Zu did not say this aloud, after all, the research institute was now facing a life-or-death situation.

After a quick breakfast, Liu Xuelan led Wu Zu on a tour of the entire research institute.

To Wu Zu's surprise, although the research institute was old, it had quite a few departments.

Although many departments have been split off, a lot of equipment has remained here.

"This is the engine department, which used to specialize in developing missile engines. It was later spun off and is now a fan factory."

"oh!"

Wu Zu seemed to be deep in thought. He peered through the crack in the door and saw that the room was filled with all sorts of old-fashioned equipment.

He couldn't help but ask, "Why weren't these devices taken away?"

Liu Xuelan smiled. "How could I possibly take it? The equipment here is all for making missile engines. Why would I need this for making fans?"

Seeing his mother's smile, Wu Zu tentatively asked, "Oh, is that so? Then shouldn't we just leave all this equipment here and not do anything about it?"

"What should we do with it? Sell it as scrap metal?"

"Uh...is there no place to recycle it?"

"Who would want these besides scrap collectors? These are all state-owned assets, and they're not easy to deal with."

Liu Xuelan also glanced inside, her eyes revealing a hint of helplessness.

These devices have been with them for many years, and everyone feels a little reluctant to sell them.

But now the research institute is facing difficulties. They have considered selling the equipment, but no one is willing to take it back.

"These devices look pretty good to me, so why isn't anyone willing to buy them? Don't other arsenals want them either?"

Seeing that Wu Zu was persistent in pressing for an answer, Liu Xuelan could only patiently explain.

"The equipment is too outdated. Nowadays, everyone uses automated equipment. Although these machines use good materials, they're not automated, so they won't work well. Who would want them?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Zu fell into deep thought.

It turns out there was a market for it, but the equipment wasn't advanced enough.

He had initially planned to sell the scrap metal, but now it seems that he wouldn't make much money from it.

It would be better to improve the equipment; that would definitely make it very popular and fetch a good price, and might even solve the research institute's funding problems.

Wu Zu did not ask any further questions. As he walked, he opened his system and typed "processing equipment" into the military supplies search bar.

Soon, a lot of content appeared below, and Wu Zu spotted one of them at a glance.

【Machinery Equipment Retrofit Technology 2.0】: Upgradeable equipment technology that can upgrade various processing equipment to CNC machining equipment. Requires 100 points.

"Upgrading to CNC machining, that's amazing!"

In the 80s, although China's basic industries had made some progress, there was still a huge gap compared with foreign precision processing equipment.

At that time, some advanced countries abroad had already begun to develop CNC equipment, while China had not even popularized automated equipment.

Many precision parts are either purchased from abroad or handcrafted by skilled technicians.

This inefficient production method severely restricts industrial development.

If I mastered this technology, I could practically propel China's industry forward by leaps and bounds.

Perhaps this technology alone could save the Northwest Ordnance Research Institute.

However, he currently has no points left in his account.

"I need to find a way to get some points!"

At this moment, Liu Xuelan stopped and pointed to a steaming workshop in front of her.

"What sets our research institute apart from others is that we have a small steel mill, so we forge most of the materials we need ourselves."

As she spoke, Liu Xuelan led Wu Zu into the workshop, pointing to boxes of parts.

"These are all pre-processed parts, each one hand made by our skilled craftsmen."

"Oh, I see!"

Wu Zu picked up a part, looked at it, and then took out calipers to measure it.

"This is not up to standard!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than he pushed an entire box of parts into the steelmaking furnace.

For a moment, the entire steel mill workshop fell silent.

The workers who were processing the parts immediately blushed, their eyes blazing with fury as they glared at Wu Zu.

This brat is really going too far!

Liu Xuelan's eyes widened as she looked at Wu Zu, and she couldn't help but scream.

"What are you doing, you brat?"

"Let's send them back to school for a fresh start!" Wu Zu replied calmly.

"Do you know that these parts took them several days to make, and you just push them directly into the steel furnace? You—"

As she spoke, she picked up a small twig from somewhere.

"I'm going to teach you a lesson today!"

Upon seeing the small twig, Wu Zu felt a sudden tightness in his buttocks and immediately ran outside.

"Mom, let's talk this out, don't hit me!"

"stop!"

Wu Zu ran even faster. Just kidding, if he got caught, his butt would be spanked until it was raw.